Making Local News!

Saturday night was "Freakfest" here in Madison. They blocked of State St. and prepared for a huge crowd. In the past there were as many as 100,000+ people that would flood the street and it would end in a riot, property damage, and ultimately tear gas and lots of arrests.

This year they charged a fee to get on State Street. $5 for advanced tickets, and $7 at the gates. But if you were smart like us, you get there before 7 PM and get on State Street for FREE before the barrels were up! ;) HAHAH! They estimated there was only about 34,000 people at Freakfest this year. A dramatic drop in attendance, but also a dramatic drop in disorderly conduct arrests. :-D

Many local news organization covered the event, doing live blogging.

I was mentioned in the blogs, and there was even a picture of me singing "Me and my Bobby McGee"!!! Here are the snips, and links to the full stories:

8:43 p.m.:
The State Street entrance to Peace Park is blocked off by fences, notes Rachel Tatge, so the only way to access this stage at Freakfest is via Gilman Street. Gomeroke is currently underway there, with the group bringing singers on stage for "I Want You To Want Me" by Cheap Trick, as well as a song by Black Sabbath and a couple other tunes.

Source: http://www.isthmus.com/daily/article.php?article=12231

(I was the one singing the Cheap Trick!)

8:50 p.m. Isthmus Stage
I see a woman dressed like Cheetara from "The Thundercats" quietly take the stage with the Gomers and tentatively launch into Janis Joplin's version of "Me & Bobby McGee." As the song picks up steam, Cheetara's confidence grows and she begins to belt it out with bluesy fervor.

The photographer on the ground, and me up on stage does nothing for my hips! ;)

Source: http://www.channel3000.com/freakfest/14442493/detail.html

More pictures from this Halloween are on http://dressjess.blogspot.com/ . Once I get ambitious, I'll tweak and make that page look decent. It is really rough right now...

This new site is more a collection of pictures of me in costume. I made it more for people interested in my costumes than my weight loss. ;)

Moving Across the Yard & FREAKFEST!!!

Aaron and I were contacted by out landlord if we’d be interested in a larger apartment for + $30 rent.

A dollar more a day and we basically get another room and double the closet space!?!?!?! ? Sweet! Hook us up!!

We signed the new lease and got the keys on Monday. We’ve done a few trips, but Aaron is doing most of the work because of my knee. He is so perfect.

We’ve got until Nov. 1st to get moved. It is nice. :) We’ll have a bit more help this weekend, and I need to call the people we bought the Precor from to help move it across the yard. (I doubt we’ll be able to move it ourselves…)

We are not really “packing” more just filling up laundry baskets, and taking them to the new place, emptying it, then back to the old place - repeat. I've also thrown out so much stuff!! It feels GREAT!!! I also have a huge bag of stuff for good-will. Nothing cleans a place like a move! :-D Once we are out, and the place is cleaned, we’ll turn in our old keys.

We took our gray cat, Sabina, over to see her new digs. She was like. “All of this is MINE!” She was not happy when she had to leave her new “Kingdom,” and return to our smaller place. We’ll be all moved soon, and Sabina will return to her Throne. She is such a spoiled sweetheart!

This weekend is going to be WILD!!!!!!!!!!!

I am so excited for FreakFest! (The 100,000+ people party on State Street in Madison.) I have my weekend itinerary planed: Cosutme contests, karaoke and people watching! :-)

We're going to karaoke tonight. I plan to try some songs as practice for when I do it LIVE ON STAGE at Gomeroke™ tomorrow night!!!!

Gomeroke™ is when you do “karaoke” but with the Live Band, The Gomers, playing the songs!

They know over 2000 songs. But I’ve narrowed my song list to down to these "classics":

Crazy Little Thing Called Love - Queen

Creep - Radiohead

Dream On - Aerosmith

D'yer Maker - Led Zeppelin

I Touch Myself - The Divinyls

I Want You To Want Me - Cheap Trick

Me And Bobby McGee - Janis Joplin

Rock And Roll - Led Zeppelin

Surrender - Cheap Trick

Sweet Jane - Velvet Underground

Sweet Transvestite - Rocky Horror Picture Show

Under Pressure - Queen/Bowie

What's Up - 4 Non Blondes

You Sexy Thing - Hot Chocolate

You're My Best Friend - Queen

Please let me know what song you think would rock the crowd the best! (Hurry time is limited! ;)

Have a Fun and Safe Weekend!!!

Jess

“But… My Knee!”

After 19 days of basically sitting on my growing butt, finally did something “active” last night.

About 3 weeks ago I stopped working out because it triggered so much pain in my knee. But last night I did a mile on the elliptical trainer on lowest resistance. It took me about 15 minutes to do that mile at a comfortable pace. In doing so, I realized that I was just making excuses to avoid exercise these past few weeks. It is so obvious now!

While it’s true, I can no longer workout like I did - I can still be active! Walking is very healthy, and walking on an elliptical trainer helped reduce the strain on my bad knees.

“But… My Knee!” is no longer a valid excuse. I can go a mile on that knee! :-D Sure it takes time, and is not as effective as my previous high-cardio workouts… but I can’t just sit on my butt waiting for surgery! ;)

Cheers!

Jess

Preview - Halloween 2007

I love Halloween! :-D This year I am going to be Cheetara from the Thundercats!





It is going to be AWESOME! :-D

Knee Update

Yesterday was my knee appointment with Dr. Timothy J. Docter, MD. (Yes. My Doctor is Dr. Docter. Try not to sing the song...)

I had to arrive early so they could take some x-rays. They took SOOooo many x-rays. (7!)

Then Dr. Docter came in to examine me.

“Can you straighten your leg for me.”

(crack-snap-crunch-slurp-pop!)

“Alright, let’s schedule your surgery!”

Seriously, it was that fast!

My right knee will have arthroscopic surgery on Nov. 8^th. There is an 80% chance of improvement, and I’ll take those odds!!! If all goes well, I will get my left knee done once my right is recovered.

Last night I biked for a bit. I can’t do resistance higher than 3 without my knee acting up, and also my pace can't exceed 12 mph without pain. :-(

It will be tough the next few months. I am worried about my limited activity and the Holidays... but in the long run, I know that I will be healthier! Soon as my knees are better I'll be able to be fully active again! :-D

Cheers!

Jess

Being positive through Injuries and Setbacks

I had all of my wisdom teeth extracted last Friday. Ow. I've been in a medicated haze since then. I have not been working out, and my "diet" has mainly been chocolate ice cream. I also have an appointment to see an orthopedic doctor next Monday about my bad knees. Surgery is likely for my torn cartilage (meniscus).

It is so hard to get healthy and stay healthy when your body is falling apart!!

Over the years, I’ve had lots of injuries and setbacks that hampered my weight loss goals. Eventually I recover, but it takes a long time, and it can be so frustrating!! Now is one of those “down” times, and I am trying not to get depressed. Sometimes, I feel like a failure even though I know I shouldn’t. It is easier for me to beat myself up for gaining 5 pounds than to feel proud of the other 130+ I’ve kept off!! I keep trying to cheer myself up with “The People Magazine Thing”, but that is not “confirmed.” And each pound gained makes me more paranoid of appearing in a National Magazine as a weight loss example! Things will be okay, and I will turn things around once I am healed.

Another thing that should make me happy: I am going to be in the 2008 Honors Edition of Cambridge’s “Who’s Who of Professional and Executive Women”!!!! Actually, I am really excited about that. It will look great on my résumé! I am not looking for a new job though. I really love my job! (I just got a raise!) But in my “dream world” – I’d work as a motivational speaker, touring all around the world! Funny how I just blogged about how I feel like a “failure,” yet I want to be a motivational speaker! Oh, how I love the irony!

But honestly, wouldn’t that be more motivating? Knowing that a *real* person, like you, was able to do it? It would be great to get motivating talk from someone who doesn’t have that “fake-smile, hyper-perky” B.S. personality most “guest lecturers” have! ;) I could really see myself as that person but I guess in a way, I’m already *that person* with this site, and that makes me happy!!! :-D

People Magazine - Half Their Size Issue Update!

Good News! I have been contacted by People Magazine again and this time I PROMISE to *NOT* shave my head. ;)

As you long time readers may recall, last October I was contacted by People Magazine as a candidate for their "Half Their Size" issue. I was selected, and I was going to have a photoshoot and everything... but then I kinda went and shaved my head. ;)


I was asked for recent pictures. So Aaron took some new ones today.
I thought I would update my current pictures and blog this good news.

Yea!!!

Jess



P.S.
I also update my Frequently Asked Questions page with the question: "How did you get started?".

When it rains it pours....

I have been stress eating so much recently! This morning my weight was back up to 155.50. This takes me back to the weight I was around the start of July again! I've been "stuck" between 157 and 152 since April. I just keep zigzagging up and down between these 5 pounds. Just when I think I'm *finally* getting back under 150, SOMETHING always happens that scuttles my progress.

Dr. Jeffrey Friedman, an obesity researcher at Rockefeller University, would contend that our bodies have a "set range" of weight it wants to be, spanning about a 30 pound range. The body's determination to maintain its composition is why a person can skip a meal, or even fast for short periods, without losing weight. It's also why he says that burning an extra 100 calories a day will not alter the verdict on the bathroom scales. Struggling against the brain's innate calorie counters, even strong-willed dieters make up for calories lost on one day with a few extra bites on the next. And they never realize it. "The system operates with 99.6 percent precision," Dr. Friedman said.

I say, BAH!! Even at 155.5, that is STILL over 130 pounds lost - and I've that I have kept it off for over 2 years!!! I doubt I am in the "0.4" percentile of "strong willed dieters."

Besides, you mean to tell me that suddenly our generation has 66% of us with a "set-point" in the overweight /obese range? Whatever! No generation before ours has had weight troubles like this! And I refuse to believe that ALL of our brains ALL decided we should ALL be fat at the same time!!!

I also read another article about how nearly 100% of Americans will be overweight or obese in our lifetime. Obesity truly is an epidemic, and our toxic culture just makes it worse.

Advertizing bombards us constantly - Telling us to consume more. Restaurants serve us calories dense dishes in enormous portions for cheap prices 24 hours a day. Yet we are shown dangerously thin movie stars and models as the "ideal" body!!!!! (I am talking to you Angelina!) GAH!

It really is no surprise to me that the September issue of Fortune Magazine will announce that NutriSystem is the fastest growing company of 2007. (http://money.cnn.com)

"NEW YORK -- FORTUNE announced today its 17th annual list of America's Fastest-Growing Companies. Topping the ranking is NutriSystem of Horsham, Pa., an online diet company that saw profits soar at a rate of 433% annually over the past three years, while its stock returned a total of 244%. Americans' bulging waistlines have helped push this 35-year-old diet company to the top of the list this year."

Of course... I've never used any weight loss program, just eating right and exercise for me!

Anyway, I am going to get back under 150... It is just SO HARD to get healthy when everywhere you look is an opportunity to "fall off the wagon" again!! Oh! And speaking of that, I am going to be in San Antonio from the 7th - 16th on a business trip! Ahhh!

When it rains it pours. ;)

August so far...

My weight was 153.25 this morning. Last week I was on vacation AND got my period. (Not a good combo!) My calories got a bit out of control, but I stuck with my exercise and made it through!

My “period puff” and vacation indulgences are burning off, and it looks like I will have another good month! YEA!

Here is my weight loss graph for August so far:

I started August 1st at 153.00, and I think I can be that weight or less by the end of the month!

I remember when it was easy to lose a pound or two a week... Now I am lucky if I get that much busting my butt for a whole month!

Still doing my best, ;)

Jess

Don't let "Fat Genes" keep you in your Fat Jeans!

At times I thought it was pointless for me to try and lose weight because I had convinced myself "Nature had made me fat." I was fat, and that was that! "You can't fight genetics!" And I had lots of overweight family members to back-up that belief. We are just plump people. That is how God made us, and we are stuck with our lot. Case Closed.

While it is true that you can not change the base body type you are born with, you can still make the best out of what you got!!! You can work with your body to gain muscle, increase your metabolism and change your body fat percentage. Don't use your genes as an excuse to stay unhealthy.

Chances are your body is good at storing fat. Back in "the caveman days" your ancestors were the ones able to live the longest during periods of food scarcity because they could live off the fat stores they easily created. (WOO! Rock on Great - great - great - great - great - great - great - great - great - great - great - great - great - great - great - great - great - great - great - great - great - great - great - great - great - great - Grandma!! Survival of the fittest, or in this case, the fattest.)

The ability to easily store fat was an AWESOME survival mechanism - 5,000 years ago - but food is no longer in short supply. We live in a Calorie-dense world where food is abundant, served 24-7, deep fried with a side of ice cream!

But even with all that, you don't HAVE to be fat!!! Fat isn't who you are, it is just what your body is prone to storing. You can work hard and be healthy!!! It takes dedication but you can make your body the best it can be!

I have worked so hard these past 5 years to get to where I am today. :) I know that if you really commit yourself to getting healthy, you will be healthy too!

Cheers!

Jess